1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate to machinery for applying a fabric to a composite material part.
2. Description of the Related Art
Composite material parts, such as those used to construct aircraft components, may include a plurality of layers that are stacked and cured to form a monolithic composite structure. Often, the first layer and/or the last layer of the material is a woven fabric. During application, or lamination, of the woven fabric to the rest of the composite material, the woven fabric may bunch or wrinkle instead of adhering smoothly. As a result, the finished composite structure may have an inner surface and/or an outer surface with defects or nonuniformities. Furthermore, the lamination has traditionally been performed manually in a time-consuming and labor-intensive process.